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Syeda Zainab.

A few months back, I decided to go to Damascus, Syria on a pilgrimage to Syeda Zainab. Syeda Zainab is an area of which at the centre is the grave of Zainab, (daughter of Hadrat Fatima AS, and Imam Ali AS). Note that Hadrat Fatima AS, is the daughter of the Holy Prophet. So finally getting there after a 4 and a half hour flight and 20 minute car journey, I reached the hotel at 7 o'clock in the morning. Instead of then going off to bed, I decided to visit the shrine which is surrounded by a beautiful mosque.

*Directions*

When you enter from the main gate, there is a long corridor which leads you directly to the shrine. On the left hand side of the corridor is a ladies washing area and beside that is a men's large prayer room. On the right hand side there was a display of some war going on around the world, (most probably of the 1 in Iraq). When you walk further down there is a large shop which sells prayer mats, beads and other Muslim holy gifts. When you reach the end of the corridor there are two huge brown doors. When you go through the doors; men go to the left and women towards the right. Before you actually enter the shrine you are required to take your shoes off.

*Appearance*

The whole mosque is very beautiful. Once you enter the shrine, you can see heaven. There is nothing like it that I have actually seen - ever. The whole ceiling and top parts of the walls are made with reflecting glass or mirror. Each piece is a triangle and has engravings on it. And there are hundreds and thousands of them. The ceiling is also covered with lavish and beautiful chandeliers. Write at the centre is the grave of Hadrat Zainab AS. The grave has a box around it which is made of real gold; I think its 22 or 24 carat. The shrine is absolutely beautiful. The shrine is kind of split into 2. Half of it is in the men's section and the other half - in the women's section. (The shrine has not been cut up or something, it's just the way the rooms are built around it). There is also loads of praying space and the prayer mats are already spread out on the floor.

*Feelings*

When I first entered the building I felt as though I was in heaven; as I have mentioned above. It was a really beautiful place and there was a really nice aroma in the air and the feeling was obviously great. It is unexplainable. I can't actually put the feelings in words. However there was a sweet perfume smell which filled the air.

*Synopsis*

On the whole the visit was a great success. I got to complete all my Ziyaarat's which are compulsory to all Shia Muslims. However Sunni Muslims do also go there. It was a really nice place and the mosque itself was beautiful. The whole mosque was surrounded by stalls and markets which sell ravishing products which are sometimes even better than the ones we can find in London - and much cheaper too. So according to me the place was really nice and it was worth me going.

*Other Info*

The mosque is located in Damascus, Syria. It is located less than 20 minutes from the airport and my hotel was near it too, so I did not have any difficulty going there whenever I wanted to.

The mosque closes at 10:00pm and opens in the hours of early morning when it is time to pray fajr. The mosque then remains open till 10:00pm the following night.

Oooh I also uploaded some pictures of it so do have a look! Thanks for reading! : )

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